EFFECTS OF DIETARY SUPPLEMENTATION WITH SOME VEGETABLE OILS ON GROWTH PERFORMANCE AND MEAT QUALITY OF COLORED BROILER CHICKENS DURING THE GROWING - FINISHING PERIOD

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation with three vegetable oils, namely soybean oil (SO), flaxseed oil (FO) and Sacha inchi oil (SIO) on growth performance and meat quality of colored broiler chickens during the growing - finishing period. A total of 120 crossbred chickens (♂Ho × ♀Luong Phuong) at 56 days of age were randomly allocated into 3 dietary treatments, with 40 birds per treatmentt and 4 replicate pens per treatment. The experimental groups were balanced for sex and initial body weight. Chickens in treatment 1 (T1) were fed a basal diet supplemented with 4.5% SO, treatment 2 (T2) received 4.5% FO and treatment 3 (T3) received 4.5% SIO for a period of 56 days. The evaluated parameters included average daily gain (ADG), feed intake and feed conversion ratio (FCR), carcass characteristics, meat quality traits and the chemical composition and fatty acid profile of breast meat. The results showed that dietary oil sources did not result in statistically significant differences in final body weight, ADG, FCR or carcass traits (P > 0.05). Meat quality parameters, including pH, drip loss, cooking loss and shear force, also did not differ significantly among treatments (P > 0.05). However, FO and SIO diets reduced lightness (L*) and increased redness (a*) of breast meat compared with the SO diet (P < 0.05). Notably, FO and SIO diets reduced significantly cholesterol content and increased the proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids, particularly omega-3 fatty acids, thereby markedly improving the omega-6/omega-3 ratio in chicken meat (P < 0.05), with SIO diet showing the most pronounced effect. These findings indicate that Sacha inchi oil is a promising dietary ingredient for producing omega-3-enriched chicken meat, contributing to enhanced nutritional value and overall quality of broiler products.